In recent years, snakes from around the world have been turning up in U.S. wetland areas. For example, Burmese pythons, one of the largest snake species on earth, are now known to be breeding in the Florida Everglades and spreading rapidly throughout South Florida. Nearly 1,000 pythons have been removed from the Florida Everglades National Park and surrounding areas since 2002—likely representing only a fraction of the total population.
The presence of exotic snakes often results from their intentional release by pet owners. These snakes can have devastating consequences to the ecosystem. Burmese pythons feed on a wide variety of birds and mammals in the Everglades. By preying on native wildlife, and competing with other native predators, pythons are seriously impacting the natural order of south Florida's ecological communities. Their voracious appetite can further threaten many endangered species and move other species closer to endangered status. Further, the snakes are increasingly turning up in backyards and gardens of homes adjacent to wetland areas.
The need exists for a trapping system that can capture the snakes so that they can be further studied and/or eradicated. The current invention comprises a safe and efficient trap designed specifically for large snakes. The design of the trap precludes the possibility of inadvertently trapping smaller animals that to do not meet the size requirements of the trap's capture mechanism.